Post by Rayven Hardy on May 16, 2016 16:24:20 GMT -5
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Dressed in a pair of yoga pants and a sports bra Ashleigh Jericho paces the ring while stretching her neck. The gym, which is usually bustling at this hour, is quiet thanks to a few well pulled strings by Devlin Scott. Ashleigh and her soon to be student Rayven Hardy, will be the only ones here today, a good thing for Rayven as Ashleigh is notoriously difficult to work with in a training environment.
Rayven enters the gym, a few minutes later than expected by Ashleigh. Rayven has music blaring through her purple Beats headphones but upon seeing Ashleigh already in the ring, the trainee quickly pulls the Beats off her ears and wraps them around her neck. She’s wearing a red shirt with the phrase ‘Taste The Rainbow’ in rainbow colored font across it as well as black yoga pants. She sits her workout bag on a bench and removes her Beats and her phone, sitting them down as well. Hardy looks around the gym.
Rayven: We’re by ourselves today?
Ashleigh exhales as she stares down at Rayven, her response is terse and to the point.
Ashleigh: Yeah, we’re by ourselves. It’ll be easier to concentrate. Question though, why are you doing this?
Rayven: Why am I wrestling? Because I love it.
The 18 year old walks over to the ring and stares into it. She closes her eyes for a moment and takes everything in, before finally opening her eyes and leaping up and onto the ring apron. She then grabs the top rope and propels herself over the top rope, landing feet first in the ring.
Rayven: This is all I’ve ever wanted since I was a little girl. I remember seeing Robb wrestle on TV and telling my parents that one day I would do this. While other little girls had Disney princess plates for their birthday parties, I had plates with wrestlers on them. I wore wrestling t-shirts, my first name on instant messenger was wrestling inspired. I love it, Ashleigh. I really do.
Ash seems unimpressed by the entrance, her eyes narrowing in disdain.
Ashleigh: First off, dispense with the flashy entrance until you actually have the skill to back up that flash. Step through the ropes like everyone else, are we clear?
She continues because let’s be honest, that wasn’t really a question so much as a command.
Ashleigh: Second of all, are you still that little girl with the plastic plates and overpriced tee shirts?
Ash steps forward, tugging at the hem of Rayven’s t-shirt.
Ashleigh: Because you certainly look like a fangirl to me.
Rayven is slightly caught off guard, but she knows Ashleigh is serious when near a wrestling ring. This isn’t the same Ashleigh Jericho that went shopping with her in Vegas, or the Ashleigh Jericho that was lobbying on Twitter to get Alpha Rising to pay attention to the newest member of the Hardy family with dreams of making it big. This is the Ashleigh who was all business, and Rayven knew it.
Rayven: I’m not that little girl anymore, and I’m ready to transition from a fan, to a wrestler. The shirt is a show of respect to my trainer, and he calls me a Skittle Jedi, so I feel like I have a right to wear it.
Not being smart, Rayven was only explaining herself. She takes a step back to break Ashleigh’s grip from her shirt.
Rayven: As for the entrance, I can change that. I was just practicing something with energy. It represents me, and hopefully is something that would get the fans excited for the match before it even begins.
Ash exhales while staring off into the distance before glaring over at her student.
Ashleigh: Do you see fans here, Rayven? Yeah, neither do I. If you want to practice your entrance on your own time that’s fine, hop around like a goddamn jackass for all I care. But when you’re with me, you climb into the ring, you stretch and you get ready. As for the Skittle Jedi stupidity; you’re not Xavier. Nobody gives a fuck about Xavier anymore. You want to find a way to pay homage to him, that’s fine… I have some ideas but you need to start building your own brand and figure out who Rayven Hardy is inside the ring. Her personality may surprise even you. So if you’re going to continue to sport that ridiculous shirt, this session is over before it’s even started; your call.
Rayven: Well all I have are wrestling shirts with me in my bag. Should I change into one of my Tyson shirts instead?
Ash closes her eyes and rubs her temples.
Ashleigh: I swear; if you turn out to be the second coming of Kenzie Rydell I’ll end you myself. Don’t wear anyone else’s swag, period. I don’t even wear my own merchandise but whatever. If you want to look like Rainbow Brite for today that’s your choice, lord knows I’m having a difficult enough time taking you seriously already.
Rayven was warned about looking like a fan in some people’s eyes, and was told she would have to accept herself as a wrestler before anyone else saw her as one, and this is proof of the warnings she had received.
Rayven: Maybe you’ll take me seriously when I learn whatever move you teach me right off the bat. I can do this Ashleigh, and I even know the direction I wanna take. I wanna do something from the top rope. I already picked a name out, ‘Flight of the Rayven’. What do you think?
Rayven smiles proudly at the name that was suggested to her by Tyson Gregory.
Ashleigh’s brow quirks at mention of picking things up right off the bat.
Ashleigh: So you’re a quick learner, are you? We’ll see. I do like the name though, and the idea of a flying finisher, that way you can use it regardless of your opponent’s size.
Ash walks over to the corner and snatches up a tablet she brought along.
Ashleigh: Xavier had a Shooting Star Press finisher…
She scrolls through until she comes to the video and hands the tablet to Rayven.
Ashleigh: Think you can hit that?
Rayven: The Skittle Star Press? I could try.
The young trainee looks around the ring.
Rayven: Where are the blue mats? I haven’t done any flying moves without them yet.
Ash rolls out of the ring and grabs the equivalent of padded crash test dummy. She lugs it into position relative to the corner and drops it. Glancing back at Rayven she eyes her student curiously.
Ashleigh: What have you done for flying moves thus far?
Rayven: So far I’ve done a splash, leg drop and a moonsault, so I’m comfortable flipping. I was actually hoping I would learn the Skittle Star press, I wanted to use it one day in the gym to surprise Xavier.
Rayven pulls the padded dummy out of the corner and into position for the move.
Rayven: Can I ask you something Ash?
Ash nods.
Ashleigh: Of course. What?
Rayven: When you first started, I know people doubted you. How did you overcome that, like, mentally? Because right now I have a ton of support from some really famous people, people like you, Robb, Gavin, Tyson, Xavier...I believe I can live up to it, but what if I sign the contract with Alpha later today, and I lose my first match? I feel like I have alot of pressure on my shoulders, and I wanna make sure I don’t crumble under all of it.
Ashleigh’s stance softens as she exhales.
Ashleigh: You do have a lot of pressure on you because people know who you are. I trained for over six years in complete obscurity, using fake names and changing my look from one school to the next so no one would recognize me. I purposely blended in with the pack. Hell I only got into Inferno because Finch talked a good game and convinced Chris I was worth a shot. Chris had no clue I’d trained under him. So when I debuted there was no hype, no pressure, no expectations. Starting off where you are, is completely different from where I started. We’re similar now though. I haven’t lost a singles match. I haven’t been pinned, haven’t been submitted, in the eyes of most I’m undefeated and that’s not going to last forever, but the pressure to make it last as long as it can is there. But here’s the thing; Robb, Gavin, Xavier, Tyson and even me… we don’t expect you to win your debut or even your first handful of matches. A few months ago you were scooping ice cream in a shop in Cali. You haven’t had enough training for anyone to expect you to excel. What we will expect, is that you try your hardest, learn from your mistakes and improve with every match. The only way you could let us down is to give up on yourself… on your dream.
Rayven: Well that will never happen. I’m finally within arms reach of what I’ve always wanted, and I’m not letting it slip away.
She cracks a half smile.
Rayven: Thanks for the encouragement...but now I guess its time for this Rayven to take flight.
She places her hands on the top rope and leaps to the top of the corner, perched up. She turns her head and see’s Ashleigh with a disapproving glare so she hops back down to the ring, steps under the middle rope and climbs to the top the right way. She lets go of the ropes, standing up straight and balancing on her own.
Rayven: Should I just go for it?
Ash glances at the placement of her feet and then up at Rayven’s surprisingly confident stance. A slight smirk forms as Ash stands just beyond the target dummy.
Ashleigh: I’m not sure yet. Your stance looks good, I’m tempted to ask you to show me something basic first. But walk me through the Shooting Star Press, how are you going to pull it off? If your thought process is sound maybe you can give it a go.
Rayven: Okay, so I’ve seen Xavier do it, and he always makes sure the opponent, in my case the dummy is in the same place everytime. I pulled the dummy to where I think he needs to be, to give me enough room to jump, flip and land on his chest, without hitting my feet on the ropes.
The confident rookie lifts one leg up, stretching it some before placing her foot back down.
Ash nods while walking up so she’s directly beside Rayven, looking up at her.
Ashleigh: The most important thing is your legs, you need to get good height or you’re not going to complete the rotation and you’re going to land on your head. I don’t care if you miss the target. If you come up short or overshoot, we can work with that. You land on your head and your dream ends right there and then. So height, and push off the turnbuckle are priority one. If you don’t have the height, don’t attempt the flip, just flop out and finish it as a basic splash. If you have the height, make sure you tuck your legs. Tucked legs help you rotate quicker and smoother. The quicker and smoother the rotation the more deadly the impact because you won’t have those flailing limbs slowing you down. Repeat what I just said, so I know you understand.
Rayven: Height is a priority, if I don’t have the height, don’t attempt the flip, just finish with a splash. Tuck my legs to rotate quicker. The smoother the rotation, the bigger the impact.
Excitedly, Rayven looks down at Ashleigh.
Rayven: I think I can do this. With your permission, I wanna try.
Ash frowns for a moment before stepping back and nodding.
Ashleigh: Let’s see what you’ve got, but remember… abort the flip if it doesn’t feel right.
Rayven inhales a deep breath, before looking down at the training dummy. She leaps off and into the air. She takes Ashleigh’s advice and tucks her legs and comes crashing down onto the dummy! As soon as her chest meets the chest of the dummy, she bounces up and to her feet quickly with a smile on her face as she begins shouting towards Ashleigh, her words slurred a little due to how fast she’s talking.
Rayven: I hit it! Ashleigh I just messed up that dummy’s day!!!
In the excitement she grabs Ashleigh and hugs her but quickly pulls away, laughing.
Rayven: Sorry, no hugging my trainer...I know, but God, that felt amazing to hit that!
Ashleigh exhales in relief when Rayven is able to hit the move without breaking her neck. She can’t help but smile at her student’s enthusiasm so much so that she doesn’t even mind the hug.
Ashleigh: Take that feeling and multiply it by about ten thousand and that’s how you’ll feel if you hit it in an arena full of cheering fans. And for the record, you actually should leap up to the top turnbuckle to set for that move because time will always be of the essence. The quicker you can get up there and set, the better. Now hit that a couple of hundred more times and you should be ready to debut it during a match. There’ll always be nerves but you should be able to hit that with your eyes closed. Pro tip, don’t actually close your eyes.
Rayven laughs and looks back up at the top rope.
Rayven: I get the feeling you’re about to make me practice this move over and over again up until Redemption tonight, aren’t you?
Ashleigh shrugs with a mischievous smile.
Ashleigh: I’m not going to make you do anything. You want a legit finisher? You want Flight of the Rayven to actually be feared by your opponents? Then you’ll do anything and everything in your power to make sure it’s flawless. You can always slip, you can always make mistakes, just look at what happened to Dead Eye. Do everything you can to minimize that risk. Run through the checklist in your head and then take off with no doubts and no regret, every single time. So should you practice until your meeting with Devlin? You tell me.
Rayven nods her head.
Rayven: I’m practicing until my meeting and I’m finding a gym after the show is over and I’m practicing some more. If I’m really about to sign a deal to wrestle, I need this move to be one that no one can get up from, and I need to make sure I don’t break my neck doing it.
She looks down at the training dummy before looking back up at Jericho.
Rayven: Thanks, again, seriously. You have no reason to be putting so much time in with me as you are. You aren’t being paid, you’re doing this all on your own, and I’m not sure why...but it means alot. I can’t believe I was watching you on the tv just a month ago, same with Tyson and Gavin and everyone..and now I can call you my friend, and part of the reason I’m THIS close to my dream.
She holds two fingers up together symbolizing how close she is.
Rayven: I just want you to know your time is appreciated, and I’m gonna bust my butt to make sure I don’t disappoint any of you that are being so generous with your time and knowledge.
Ash smiles while walking over to give Rayven a warm hug.
Ashleigh: Want to know why I’m working with you? Because you’re doing it right and I respect that. You’re taking your time, you’re going to a developmental territory and you get that this isn’t some game. Others I’ve taken issue with have been blind to that. So yeah, you’ve got my guidance and support and like I said, should shit ever go sideways in Alpha, you’ve got some who’ll have your back. Count on it.
Ashleigh releases the hug and smiles at Rayven.
Ashleigh: Now get your ass up on that turnbuckle and practice, practice, practice.
Rayven: Time for this Rayven to take flight...again!
Hardy laughs as she leaps to the top rope, prepared to continue practicing her finish as many times as it takes to perfect it with Ashleigh looking on.